I was Christmas shopping today. I found my items and went toward the cashiers. There was one register open and the clerk wasn't checking anyone out. There was a woman standing about ten feet away from the register (basically all the way across the wide lane designated for register foot traffic) talking on her cell phone.

I stepped around the woman and approached the register, putting my items on the counter, only to hear, "Excuse me! There's a LINE and it starts behind me!" The woman still had her cell phone to her ear, but seemed pretty incensed that I'd "skipped" her. Apparently, I was supposed to wait behind her until she finished her phone conversation and moved toward the register. All of my ehell training went out of my brain and I blurted out the first thing that came to mind, which was, "I'm sure that the clerk would be happy to help you, once you've finished your phone conversation."

By this time, there were people lining up behind her and the clerk had started my transaction. The woman called me "rude" and a few other names. She was the next customer the clerk waited on. I ignored her as she continued to call me names, thanked the clerk and walked out of the store.

I got in my car and had that, "OMGosh, I can't BELIEVE I said that!!" moment and got really embarrassed. So I throw myself on the mercy of the ehell court.

Was what I said rude?

Would it have been better if I'd said something else?

Would it have been better if I'd said, "OK," and moved back behind the woman until she was ready to check out?

So as I understand it, she was just waiting to finish her phone conversation a decent distance away from the register before she went up there? And she had made no attempt to move towards the register? In that case I think it was your turn to be checked out as you had no way of knowing that she was in line and even if she was, she planned on finishing the conversation first. That said, unless the store had a sign that says people won't be helped unless they hang up their cells, it really wasn't your place to impose that rule on everyone.

I think my reaction would have been a (truly) confused look and, "But you're not IN line."

And, the really sad part of the whole story is that it's not like she didn't get checked out. And actually pretty quickly, too. All that anger and nonsense on her part for what really amounts to a momentary blip in her day. She could have calmly said, "Oh, the line is actually behind me" (even if she were on her phone) and not raised her blood pressure. Instead, she reacted the way she did and didn't even accomplish anything constructive with it.

People get so perturbed in life. And for no real reason. Shoot! Just calm down and go with the flow a little. Someone gets in front of you in line. It's annoying. But there's no reason to let it ruin your day. Roll your eyes and go on.

So as I understand it, she was just waiting to finish her phone conversation a decent distance away from the register before she went up there? And she had made no attempt to move towards the register? In that case I think it was your turn to be checked out as you had no way of knowing that she was in line and even if she was, she planned on finishing the conversation first. That said, unless the store had a sign that says people won't be helped unless they hang up their cells, it really wasn't your place to impose that rule on everyone.

That's what I was afraid of. I said it in a very calm, non-snotty tone, but it still felt weird to basically tell another adult I didn't approve of their behavior.

I believe that lady was rude since she was holding up the line talking on her phone. If she was inline putting her items on the convier belt while chatting then I would say you were rude but since she was 10 feet away how would someone know if she was in line or not? Then the name calling was rude on her part too.

I think you were rude. Unless there is a posted policy stating that they won't wait on people on phones then you leave it up to the cashier to make that call (no pun intended).

But they weren't waiting on her. It would be similar to walking up to a cashier and seeing another customer browsing the earings near the counter but 10 feet away. You walk pass them and they get pissy becuase "they were next in line." Well how are you to know they are wanting to be checked out. If they were ready, they'd be at the counter getting their purchases rung up, not browing earings.

I think you were rude. Unless there is a posted policy stating that they won't wait on people on phones then you leave it up to the cashier to make that call (no pun intended).

I disagree that OP was rude because there was a reasonable presumption that Weeble could go to the free cashier. Unless there was a queue, no one was in line. Once Weeble went up to the cashier, Phone Lady rudely informed Weeble there was a line and it started behind her. It was rude for Phone Lady to presume that she can designate how the lines work in a store. Unless there is a queue, the line is one-after-another - so Phone Lady would have been serviced next had she actually been standing in the proper line.

So Phone Lady presumed to determine where the line was and Weeble presumed to determine that she wasn't in line and a polite way of saying it was, "You can be helped when your call is finished."

I believe that lady was rude since she was holding up the line talking on her phone. If she was inline putting her items on the convier belt while chatting then I would say you were rude but since she was 10 feet away how would someone know if she was in line or not? Then the name calling was rude on her part too.